The heart in overdrive
by owlsareahoot
Summary: After a difficult case, Brennan takes Booths advice and puts her brain into neutral and her heart into overdrive.
1. A moment of clarity

_Disclaimer: While I want Bones to be mine, mine, mine – wanting is not getting. And in this case is definitely NOT having. Boo._

**Chapter one – A moment of clarity**

They sat together in the communal lounge above the lab, beers in hand, trying to unwind from a tough three-week long case that saw none of them get much sleep while trying to find a serial killer. Between chasing down a suspect list as long as your arm and a body count that could be counted on two hands and a foot – to say the pressure had been on for the FBI special agent and the squints he worked with – is probably the understatement of the century.

They relaxed discussing the finer details of the case, while sinking back into the soft cushions on the large lounges, taking the occasional sip of beer. All of them had felt the heat on this case, not just Booth and Brennan. And all of them looked exhausted as a result of it.

Brennan quietly stood up and walked over and lent her arms on the railing. She sighed wearily as she watched the other staff down below slowly pack up and head off for their weekend. She turned back to her team and in her exhaustion, watched them with the detached air of an anthropologist watching an undocumented social ritual. And it was in that moment she had a rare flash of clarity: she saw for the first time the dark circles under their eyes, the slumped shoulders and the effort it took them to even move. They were mentally, physically and quite possibly emotionally exhausted – although she might have been wrong about that – emotions are not her strength 

– that's Booths.

Her eyes flickered towards him, as they often did, and she was a little taken aback at what she saw. His normally handsome face was deeply etched with the worries and the stress this case had caused them all. They might have found the serial killer, but it didn't mean that he didn't feel the pain of the twelve sets of parents and families that had lost their children to a sociopath masquerading as child care worker. She knew that for every child's remains they found, he went through untold turmoil of imagining it was Parker, and in her moment of insight, she thought could see the shadow of residual pain in his haunted eyes.

She sighed again and shook her head slightly, taking a closer look at the people in front of her. This moment of insight was showing her just what this kind of case cost them all. She saw that it wasn't just etched on Booths face, but it had pervaded the very beings of all those that she considered her second family.

After Zach's betrayal, the one thing she'd never expected was for her team to grow closer. The shared pain of grief and guilt they had felt were not going to drive a wedge into a dynamic team 

– both the Jeffersonian and the FBI were adamant about that. After many individual and group therapy sessions, anger, grief, a river of tears and a lot of silence, Sweets' patience and tenacity – and a lot of clout given to him by both entities to threaten his patients – ensured all five of the elitist team were more or less healing and adjusting to the horrendous circumstances. As a result they were all more open and understanding of each other than they ever had been in the past, helping to strengthen their bond and thus over time, reinforcing it.

_My second family_, that thought always made her smile. She raised her eyes to look at them again, and she felt a small pain and tightening in her chest. That moment of clarity had shown her just how much her family was suffering - and suddenly that thought crystallised in her mind. This was a time to put the scientist in her aside, _take the brain and put it in neutral – take the heart and pop it in overdrive. _She smiled to herself again as she remembered Booths words to her when her father was on trial.

What they needed was a little time out. Her head snapped up and her eyes widened as her mind quickly came up with the perfect solution – and how she was going to get it all done in the next couple of hours. Booth was concerned when he noticed Brennan's wide-eyed look and he walked over to her and lent on the railing with his back to their friends. "Bones, you ok?" he kept his voice quiet so he didn't startle her too much. She looked like she was in a trance.

She turned to face him and noticed his furrowed brows framing his coffee-coloured eyes, then smiled as she said "I was just thinking about something you told me once". He looked at her with quizzical eyes, when she continued "Order some take-out for everyone Booth, my treat. And whatever you do, don't let them leave here until I get back, otherwise you ARE going to be sorry". He saw the twinkle in her eyes, something he hadn't seen the whole time they had been working on the case and was about to make a smart retort when she suddenly took off towards her office, her shoes clunking loudly on the metallic walkway high above the lab.

"Hey, where's Brennan going?" Angela asked, slowly standing up, her face filled with worry. "I really don't know" he answered, "but she's just told me to order take-out for all of us – her treat" he rubbed his hands together with glee, "so what will it be boys and girls... Thai? Chinese? Pizza?"

The noise that erupted from the lounge was almost deafening as it echoed loudly around the otherwise silent and empty lab.

-- x x x X X O X X x x x --

Brennan sat at her desk and quickly made up list of people she needed to call and the arrangements that needed to be made.

_I may as well start at the top because without their approval, this will amount to nothing_, she thought as she dialled Dr Goodman's office. Thankfully he was working late, and after some fast talking, pleading and a few minor white lies, she managed to talk him round and agree to her idea. She only hoped her second and third calls on the list were going to go so well. To her absolute astonishment, they did go well, very well in fact – she was surprised her heart-felt plea didn't fall on deaf ears. She smiled, _now_ _the rest will be a snap_.

In a little over an hour and nine calls later, everything was set. Now she only hoped everyone would be ok with what she'd done. It was pretty presumptuous of her. Doubts started to creep in as she nervously walked back upstairs to her friends. She smiled as she listened to them laughing and joking with each other. _A little take-out and a few beers was just what they needed,_ she thought. Booth was right, letting her heart do the driving for a change instead of her brain was a good thing. She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders as she walked into the lounge. Angela and Booth were wrangling over some fried rice, but Hodgins looked up and smiled "Hey Dr B! Come and grab some of this Mee Krab before Booth eats it all", he shuffled up the lounge to make room for her to sit, but it was Cam who noticed the odd look on Brennan's face.

"Dr Brennan, are you ok?" Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked over at her. She blushed a light shade of pink as she realised all eyes were focused on her. _Ok Temperance, this is it. _She put her head down, hoping no-one would see her embarrassment, "I uh" she stammered, "I, uh, I was just thinking how nice it would be to get away for a bit. You know, especially after this case". She heard everyone murmur their agreement. _Okay, just do it. If they hate it, then that's fine too. I'll just make some calls to undo the plans_, she tried to rationalise her nervous state to herself. She lifted her head then took out four envelopes from her pocket and as she handed them to each of the she said "I hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of arranging a little time-out for all of us. There's this nice little place I know that has something for everyone". No-one moved. All eyes stared at her and she was increasingly becoming uncomfortable at the scrutiny.

"It's all arranged. Goodman and Cullen have agreed to give us five working days off as fully paid leave – and it doesn't come out of our holiday entitlements either. So counting the weekends, that's nine days away", she looked around at the unblinking eyes and open mouths still staring at her. _Oh God, why did I think this was a good idea? No more spur-of-the-moment heart-stuff for me_, she thought glumly.

She gulped, then continued ,"A mini-bus will be picking us up here at 9pm tonight to take us – I really didn't trust that any of us could drive after the few weeks we've had" she ventured a smile, but no-one had so much as moved a muscle or uttered a word since she sat down. Her smile faltered in the deafening silence, and her mouth had suddenly gone dry. She took a sip of beer so she could continue, "Cam, I've talked to Richard and he'll be able to join us for most of the get-away, he'll be here with your stuff in an hour so" Cams eyebrows looked like they were going to join up with her hairline.

Cam had been dating Richard for about four months after meeting at a Jeffersonian soiree. Everyone on the team had really come to like the lanky, blond-haired man who not only made Cam very happy, but was very amusing in his own right. As the head of archaeology at the Jeffersonian, he seemed to fit in well with all of them.

She then turned to face her partner and irrationally felt butterflies in her stomach and she tried to cover her nerves with a small half-smile, "Rebecca has allowed us to pick-up Parker on the way – he can come away with us for the nine days too". She watched his face as his eyebrows raised even higher on his forehead – if that were possible – and his mouth only gaped wider.

She dragged her eyes away from his face and turned to look at all the stupefied faces in front of her, and her brows came together in consternation, _have they even breathed since I sat down?_ But still there was just utter silence in the lounge, for that matter, everything was so still you could hear an ant pass wind from the far corner of the lab. Suddenly she couldn't cope with their response – or lack of it – anymore and she desperately had to get away. This wasn't going according to plan at all.

To be continued...

_A/N: This is my first ever fanfic, so please review. And a special thank you to the lovely Montreal Squint for being my beta!_


	2. Fears and tears

_Disclaimer: While I want Bones to be mine, mine, mine – wanting is not getting. And in this case, is definitely NOT having. Boo.  
_

**Previously...**

_She dragged her eyes away from his face and turned to look at all the stupefied faces in front of her, and her brows came together in consternation, _have they even breathed since I sat down?_ But still there was just utter silence in the lounge, for that matter, everything was so still you could hear an ant pass wind from the far corner of the lab. Suddenly she couldn't cope with their response – or lack of it – anymore and she desperately had to get away. This wasn't going according to plan at all._

**Chapter two – Fears and tears**

With tears starting to well in her eyes, she put her head down again so they couldn't see them. She quickly stood up and started to walk away, but turned and said "Just open the envelopes – all the details are inside". She didn't wait for a response.

She moved quickly down the walkway and as soon as she was out of sight she sprinted down the stairs and ran straight into the ladies bathroom. She locked herself in a cubicle and stood with her back against the door, breathing in a shaky gulp of air. A tear escaped and ran down her cheek and she hastily brushed it away with the back of her hand. Why on earth did she think this was a good idea? Clearly it wasn't. _Ok so no one is keen to get away. That's fine. Everyone has lives and I've probably ruined their plans for the weekend anyway_, she thought as she tried to calm herself down with reason. She had to admit, if this was done for her, she'd be annoyed.

Another tear threatened to course its way down her cheek, and she quickly leaned over and grabbed some toilet tissue and dabbed at her eyes. Why is this so important to her? She never did anything like this – it was just so totally out of character for her. She tried to steady her breathing, but it was still coming in shaky gasps and her heart was painfully beating in her chest. She slid down the back of the door until she was sitting on the tiled floor then put her head on her knees. She felt nauseous. _Why is this so important to me? It's not that big a deal if they don't want to go. But why am I so upset? _She took a deep breath of air and let it out slowly, she continued in this way until her wildly beating heart slowed to a more normal rhythm.

Temperance Brennan might only need a nanosecond to think most things through, but when it came to working out her emotions, it took far, far longer. So to try and answer her own questions – she did the only thing she knew to work – she used logic. But her train of thought was interrupted when she heard voices and she jumped with a start when the bathroom door opened with a bang.

She held her breath, "Bones?" Booths vary male voice echoed around the empty bathroom. She bit her lip, willing him to go away. "Bones, what are you doing in here? Will you come out here please?" She kept silent. What was she going to say anyway?

She heard a noise in the cubicle beside her, "Bones, do I have to come in there and get you out?" Booths voice sounded very odd. She lifted her head off her knees with a slight frown and as she did, she noticed movement above her. "Bones, if you won't talk to me, I am coming in to get you" Booth stated in a strained voice. She looked up and saw his arms dangling over the top of her cubicle. His face then appeared over the wall, wearing a lop-sided grin as he started to push himself over the top of the wall. "Booth, what are you doing?" she said harshly, "Just leave me alone" then sighed, knowing full well he'd ignore her.

"Why are you sitting on the floor in a bathroom cubicle? Talk to me Bones!" he had a leg over the wall and a determined glint in his eye. Then before she could even open her mouth to reply, he was over the wall and lowering himself onto the seat. Now it was her turn to stare. How dare he invade her space – especially in a toilet for goodness sake? She was just about to open her mouth to give him a piece of her mind, when he stepped down and picked her up, her arms pressed tightly by her side then set her on her feet. He looked her in the eye and saw the pain she was hiding. His heart went to his mouth and he slipped his arms around her in a warm embrace. She stayed rigid for a few seconds or so, and then he felt her relax into his arms and chest. He pulled back slightly to look at her "Did you go and use your heart again and get scared by the results?" he asked her with his most winning 'charm smile'.

How did he always know what was going on with her? He knew her better than she knew herself at times. She didn't know whether to hit him to wipe the smug grin off his face or to kiss those delicious lips that were suddenly distracting her because of their proximity. She stood looking into his eyes for so long, lost in their own little world, that she didn't hear Angela and Cam come into the bathroom, or feel Booths arms suddenly leave her body cold and unsupported.

"Bren, are you in here? Are you ok? What are you doing?" she heard the concern in Angela's voice, but her legs unexpectedly buckled as Booth removed his arms. She abruptly lurched forward with a grunt and in the tight space, her head thumped into Booths sternum, pushing him backwards and knocking the wind out of him as he fell heavily on the toilet seat. He groaned in pain which suddenly turned into a yelp of surprise as Brennan landed face first in his lap, her knees painfully landing on the tiled floor with a thud, the soles of her shoes clearly visible under the gap in the door.

Cam and Angela turned to each other, each face mirroring the other: wide-eyes, raised eyebrows and their lips spread in a leer. Both sniggered, but Angela couldn't help herself as she whispered loudly, "I knew he wanted to thank her personally, but couldn't they have waited until we got there to get a room". Both women fell into a fit of giggles and headed back out the door, but they could clearly hear Cams voice say to Angela, "I thought he wanted to thank her, not the other way round" the door shut behind them as they started giggling again.

Booth looked down at his lap, she hadn't moved since she fell. While he really didn't mind the scenario, now wasn't the time or the place. Besides, if she didn't move her head soon, he wasn't entirely sure if he could control his little soldier – he often had a mind of his own – especially when it came to Temperance Brennan.

He touched her shoulder as he asked "Bones, are you ok?" he could feel her shaking underneath his hand, and he was becoming concerned that she was upset again, when she abruptly pushed herself off his lap. She was chuckling under her breath, a huge smirk gracing her delicate features. She was highly embarrassed, her face flushed a deep red but she was so tired, the humour of the entire situation was for once not lost on her. She looked into his stunned face and snorted at what she saw, then burst out laughing. She watched his eyes narrow, and between snorts and giggles she managed to get out, "that was the stupidest thing I've ever seen you do" she took a breath then, before he could berate her, she continued, "I mean who climbs over a toilet cubicle wall?" she was exhausted and she couldn't stop the giggles from bubbling up out of her chest.

He watched her as she tried to control herself, but was just relieved to see her smiling again. He sheepishly looked at her then started laughing too. Eventually the giggles subsided and she rather painfully lifted herself off the floor, Booth holding her hand to support her. "Did I hurt you when I fell?" she asked as she straightened, noticing that he hadn't let her hand go. "I'll live, did you hurt yourself?" he asked when she winced slightly, not taking his eyes off her. She noticed the look in his eyes, and she couldn't drag hers away from his face. She felt her fingers gently lace through his, and he moved closer. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest and little butterflies formed in her tummy.

But suddenly the women's toilet door banged open again and the two nearly jumped out of their skin. The spell was broken as they heard Hodgins' flustered voice, "Will you two hurry up – we've only got an hour until the mini-van is here to pick us up – and you both have to go home and pack and get back here in time. Now scoot!" the door slammed shut again.

"Guess we'd better get a move on then" Booth said huskily. Brennan turned without looking at him to open the door, and both momentarily got tangled up with each other again as they tried to manoeuvre around each other and the inward opening door. For the briefest of moments she was almost sure she felt something hard brush against her hip – and it definitely wasn't his belt buckle. She bit her lip to hide her smile.

_Everything was going to be alright_, she thought as her heart skipped a beat – maybe she should trust 'driving with her heart' more often – who knew where it was going to take her. Her doubts, fears and tears forgotten as they headed out the bathroom door together and home to quickly pack.

_To be continued..._

_A/N: I've been so overwhelmed by the response to the first chapter, I just have to say thank you to everyone who reviewed – you also gave me the courage to continue (as well as making my day)! _

_Please review, let me know what you think. And a special thank you goes to the lovely Montreal Squint for being my beta!_


	3. Hitting the road

_**Disclaimer:**__ While I want Bones to be mine, mine, mine – wanting is not getting. And in this case, is definitely NOT having. _

**Previously...**

"Guess we'd better get a move on then" Booth said huskily. Brennan turned without looking at him to open the door, and both momentarily got tangled up with each other again as they tried to manoeuvre around each other and the inward opening door. For the briefest of moments she was almost sure she felt something hard brush against her hip – and it definitely wasn't his belt buckle. She bit her lip to hide her smile.

_Everything was going to be alright,_ she thought as her heart skipped a beat – maybe she should trust 'driving with her heart' more often – who knew where it was going to take her. Her doubts, fears and tears were long forgotten as they headed out the bathroom door together and home to quickly pack.

**--  
**

**Chapter 3 – Hitting the road**

Brennan was the last to arrive back at the Jeffersonian, the mini-van was packed and five excited workmates running on adrenalin were sitting in the dimly lit interior of the van noisily chatting away, eager to get going. She smiled as she realised this was a vastly different group in front of her compared to only a few hours ago. She was happy she could make a difference.

She gave her bags to Ernie the driver who loaded them in the back of the van, but hesitated at the door as she heard the friendly banter and talk. Even after all this time, she still felt a little awkward in social settings – even if they were like her family, and the doubts started playing around in her head again. She remained more than a little nervous about this spur-of-the-moment trip away, and she still hadn't enlightened them as to where they were staying or what they'd be doing. In all the excitement of the last couple of hours, nobody had even thought to ask where they were going.

Booth watched as Brennan approach the van then stop at the door in hesitation. She was chewing on her lower lip, a sure sign she was worrying or nervous about something. He melted at the sight of her; he knew that she was trying to use her heart and despite how uneasy it was making her feel, she was doing it anyway. Brick by brick she was lowering those enormously high walls she had built over the years to protect herself, and he couldn't be happier than help her slowly crush those bricks to dust. Because with every brick she removed, lowering that wall just a little more, allowed him to glimpse what was shining on the inside, and every one of those rays that he spied only served to cement his love for her.

Brennan's thoughts were interrupted when she saw his hand reaching out from the interior of the van, "Come on Bones, let's get this show on the road" he gave her his charm smile and for once she took his hand without protest. And in the instant she felt his touch – all those doubts were instantly banished.

He gently guided her into the empty seat next to him, and to avoid his eyes, she looked around at the van. Everybody had their own double seat. And as she noticed everyone sat in pairs, she felt a flutter again. _Not now,_ she thought furiously. To ignore the butterflies, she observed the details. There were four seats to a row, one row on either side of the van with a small aisle running between the rows of seats. Hers and Booths seats sat behind the driver, facing the back of the van. In front of her sat Cam, while Richard sat in the seat next to Cam, but on the other side of the aisle - opposite Booth, and both of them sat with their backs resting on the sides of the van so they could chat to everyone.

Typically – like two randy teenagers – Angela and Hodgins' sat up the back together behind Richard in the one seat – giggling and whispering when they weren't contributing to the chatter. She smiled at her best friend and raised her eyebrow – even she knew they were up to no good.

Ernie slammed the door shut and headed over to Rebecca's to pick up Parker. As the trip was officially underway, she watched as Hodgins pulled out a large silver hip flask filled with alcohol. "Does this feel like a high-school excursion to anyone else?" he sniggered and took a quaff from the flask, "because we may as well pretend we are 15 again" he then passed it to Angela. Yep, she was right – two horny teenagers up to no good at the back of the bus.

Ange grinned as she took the flask from her love, "So does this mean we get to play _Truth or Dare_?" she sipped, swallowed, grimaced and handed the flask to Richard, an eyebrow raised and her grin was positively evil.

"Truth or Dare?" Richards deep laugh was infectious, "I've been trying to _forget_ about that game since I was 15", he laughed again, took a long swig then handed the flask on to Cam, who was rolling her eyes. "That game got me into so much trouble, I still cringe at the memories" he laughed again, shaking his head at the thought.

Cam smiled at her boyfriend, took a taste then wiped her mouth daintily before passing it onto Brennan, while trying to be the mature voice of reason, "How about we save the game for when we won't corrupt a six-year-old with your perverted 18+ rated game Angela?"

Brennan was confused by the conversation, she'd never heard of 'Truth or Dare', but followed the actions of the others and had a nip from the flask and passed it onto Booth without comment.

"I appreciate the concern for my sons' well-being" he said with a laugh, "especially if Angela has got anything to do with the dares - _and_ has her hands on alcohol of any kind" he continued with a twinkle in his eye, he held the flask up in a mock salute then took a mouthful himself.

He leaned forward to Angela handing her the flask. As he settled back in his seat, he pulled a couple of CDs out of his jacket pocket and waved them in the air for all to see, "How about something that six-year-old _will_ enjoy with us", he turned around to Ernie and whispered something in his ear, then turned to face everyone with a tight grin on his face. "I propose we have..." he paused for effect, "wait for it people..." then spread his arms out wide as he announced, "our own version of air guitar championships!"

Suddenly, in perfect timing with his announcement – music blared loudly from the speakers situated around the van, Booth half stood in his seat facing them and doing his best guitar-playing imitation 

to Deep Purple's opening riff of _Smoke on the Water_. The van erupted in hoots, hollers, whoops, laughter and clapping. Brennan chuckled at his antics. As the driver turned the music down slightly, Booth commented while still working his solo, "I brought a couple of compilation CDs I made up of 70s and 80s rock – I'd hoped we'd be able to listen to them at some point".

Before anymore could be said, the van had come to a stop in front of some houses, and Ernie turned to Booth "We're here". He turned the music down some more as Booth went to collect Parker. She watched quietly as the front door opened with a bang, light spilling onto the front porch and a blonde curly-haired boy running with his arms wide open who then launched himself into his father's arms. Booth caught him easily and smothered him with a bear hug and kisses on the face. They could see the excited smile on Parker's face and she heard Angela's voice "Awww, he's so cute! Look how excited he is to see his Dad. Sweetie, you must have done some fast talking to get her to agree to let him come away with us".

They all watched as he wiggled his way out of father's arms, give his mum a fleeting kiss goodbye then run towards the van. They saw the look of annoyance on Rebecca's face as Booth went to grab Parkers gear, then their attention was distracted by the little whirlwind that is Parker Booth clambering up the stairs and diving straight into Brennan's arms "Bones!" he squealed, "missed you!". He threw his little arms around her neck, gave her a sloppy wet kiss on the cheek, "Hey Parks, I missed you too" she said with a smile as she returned the hug and kiss, then he was gone – repeating the greeting for each the passengers.

Parker too had benefitted from the close bonds forged by his Dads work colleagues, and now it was like he had a third family, full of aunts and uncles that he could – and did on a regular basis – charm with the infamous Booth smile. They had all grown close to Booths son, each in their own way and Booth had to admit it had caused a subtle change in his boy that was evident to both he and Rebecca. Thankfully both could see it was a positive change for the youngster – it seemed that his third little family were a very good influence on him.

His favourite was of course Bones, not only because his Dad 'liked' Bones the most, but because she taught him really cool stuff too. And when she helped him with his school projects; he always got an A. He also liked that he got to teach her about kid stuff, like cartoons and how to win on Playstation – not very many adults let him tell them all about his favourite things and then ask questions – that's how he knew she was special, because she listened and talked to him and didn't treat him like a baby.

Brennan smiled down at Parker as he settled himself next to her, telling her how excited he was they were all going on holiday together as Booth got back in the van. For everyone looking on at the scene in front of them, they marvelled at just how far Brennan had come in the last four and a half years.

With Parkers gear safely stowed, Booth sat down watching Bones with his son as Ernie closed the behind him, then he roused himself from the sight, "Let's get this show on the road!" he yelled happily.

"YEAH!" everyone yelled their reply. Booth turned to Parker who'd been watching his dad with a smile on his face, "Buddy, we're all going to play air-guitar championships to pass the time while we're travelling" Parkers face lit up with excitement, "and you and I are going to show everyone how it's done – just like what we do on our 'boys weekends' ok?" he said with a grin from ear to ear.

"Cool! Can we do 'our' song first?" Parker asked, bouncing up and down in his seat, his excitement evident. "Sure thing bud" Booth replied, then he turned to Ernie "Can you put on track 14 please Mr Music, then when the song is done can you press pause?"

"No problem" replied Ernie, as he moved his hand to push some buttons on the CD player. Booth and Parker moved to the ends of their respective seats so they were near each other in the aisle, they bumped knuckles and turned to face the gang, then assumed the position: left hand held up and out to the side, fingers splayed – ready to play the strings on the 'neck' of the guitar, while the right hand is down low in front of the belly. They looked at each other with the same silly grin, and then music filled the van.

The moment was priceless. Their movements were perfectly synchronised, both were strumming their 'guitar', their faces wore identical expressions – lips pursed and brows furrowed in mock concentration and both were singing their lungs out to _Sweet Child of Mine_ by Guns N' Roses.

The gang burst into laughter, whoops and whistles as this father and son team worked their magic. Angela had pulled her digital camera out of its case and was busily taking happy snaps while trying not to shake the camera from laughing so hard.

The Booth boys played in perfect unison and the gang were a little surprised at how well Parker mimicked the guitar playing on the song, he was clearly having a ball. He turned his head and nodded at his dad, and Booth moved his hands so he was playing 'air drums'. They got some more whoops and whistles for that mean manoeuvre. Finally the song ended and Ernie hit the pause button.

The van erupted in loud cheers and clapping and both Booth boys wore the same huge grin. The elder grabbed the younger's' hand and they took a bow together as best they could while sitting in their seats. When the cheers, clapping and laughter had finally died down, Booth announced "And THATS how you do it, you wanna-be rock stars!" everyone laughed again, and he continued "So now, you each have to score our performance out of 10, at the end of the trip, the person/team with the most amount of points wins".

"What do we win Dad?" asked Parker, he was certain no-one could beat him and his dad. Booth opened his mouth to respond, but Brennan got in first.

"How about I supply the prize, but it will have to be surprise for now, because I don't know what it is yet" she said as she watched his face beam with delight, then continued, "And I promise it will be great for whoever wins the championships, ok?" he slid across the seat and gave her a huge hug, "You're the best Bones!"

She hid a shy smile as she returned his hug, but Booth saw it and his stomach did a mini-somersault as he watched her with his son. Then he remembered where he was. "So, Richie, my man – score 

please for the 'Booth Boys Band' – and make it good, we want to win this mysterious prize!" he put on his best charm smile.

Parker looked at Richard too, wearing exactly the same charm smile. There were grins and chuckles all round as everyone looked at Booth and mini-Booth doing their best to win (or charm) them over. Brennan decided to keep a tally of the scores and all eyes turned to her when everyone had finished rating the 'Booth Boys Band'. "That's a total of 48.5 out of a possible 50 – 97 per cent – well done!" Parker bounced in his seat again – no-one was going to beat that!

And so it went, the four hour trip passed by in the blink of an eye – the fatigue and exhaustion long forgotten as everyone had multiple turns at wowing their friends. They all sang, laughed, cheered, clapped and whistled in support of each other, then add to that Hodgins seemingly bottomless flask of vodka that he surreptitiously kept refilling and handing around, it had been a long while since they had all let their hair down, get a little tipsy and had so much fun – especially together. Brennan couldn't remember a time in her adult life when she had laughed as much or felt so relaxed in the company of so many people.

Over the course of the trip everyone had a standout performance: Richard's was _Born to be Wild_ by Steppenwolfe. He'd removed his tie and wrapped it around his forehead twice, forcing his large bouncy blond curls high up on his head, reminding most of them of John McEnroe when he payed tennis in the 80s. He sat on his knees on the seat, his wiry frame set in position, "Ready please Mr Music!" his eyebrows wiggling up and down cheekily at Cam, a tight smirk on his face as the music hit their ears. He hammed it up for his audience and his unruly curls bounced in time with the music – and they all had sore cheek muscles by the end of the song from laughing so hard.

Angela showed just what it was to be a rock stars daughter – her piece-de-resistance was an excellent impersonation of her dads band ZZ Top playing _Tush_ – she'd put on her sunglasses just like he wears everywhere, she only wished she had something she could shove on her face to imitate that gnarly old beard of his.

Cams most memorable piece had them in stitches with her much vamped up version of _Barracuda_ by Heart and like every teenager everywhere – used her hairbrush as a microphone. Hodgins was a complete surprise to them all – he was really good! And it was his awesome version of Alice Coopers _Schools out_ that had finally convinced them he'd played guitar in a rock band when he was younger.

Brennan really didn't know any of the songs and was quite content to keep score, and hold onto Parker who had fallen asleep in her lap about an hour into the trip – despite the noise and excitement in the van. But she did get a chance to show them she wasn't quite as clueless as they all thought before Parker had settled on her lap.

She had studied Booths CDs for something that might have been familiar and was just about to give up when she saw the name of a song that triggered a memory of the time she'd spied on Russ using an old tennis racket as his guitar and how he watched himself pretending to be a rock star in front of the full length mirror in his bedroom. He'd caught her snorting in laughter while watching his antics as she looked through the slightly ajar bedroom door. He'd just about broke a rib when he'd tickle-tortured her for a full half-hour because she'd been spying. But he had played that song _loudly_ over and over, driving them all crazy – she could even recall all the words he'd played it so many times – 

all she had to do was imitate what Russ used to do in front of that mirror. She was a little surprised the memory now triggered was so clear.

So she'd told Ernie the number of the song, and then she floored them all with a truly wicked rendition of AC/DCs _Back in Black_. She had surreptitiously taken her soft auburn hair out of the tight bun it had been in for work, and she threw her head and upper-body wildly up and down, her hair creating a breeze and all the while paying the guitar as she did her best head-banging imitation of the stereo-typical long-haired rockers of the 80s. When the song finished, she snorted at the stunned looks on her friends faces – seems she was full of surprises tonight. She chuckled again, raised an eyebrow then said "Score?" while holding her notebook and pen up in the air in an exaggerated gesture of impatience as she waited for them to respond to her act. She ended up scoring 48 out of 50, much to Booths amusement. Nobody had beaten his and Parkers first performance of the trip.

Finally though, it was with great relief for poor old Ernie the driver, who turned the music down to the light-hearted boo's of his rowdy passengers, but he just smiled as he said loudly, "We're here!" The noise stopped instantly as everyone turned to the windows and peered out into the dark, trying to get some kind of indication of where they were. "Finally!" Brennan nervously breathed.

_To be continued..._

**A/N:** _I'm so sorry to take so long with this chapter. In my inexperience, I've now realised I should really have far more chapters in advance so when things get hectic, I can take five minutes to upload a chapter rather than weeks as I try to find time to write. _

_Also, I have quite a few people to thank for reviewing but unfortunately I lost all my emails during a change in provider and no amount of backing up seemed to help with recovering anything lost. So to all those who so kindly reviewed I thank with all my heart and apologise profusely for not responding... _

_With that said, I realise this isn't the best filler chapter but they had to get there and I kinda wanted to keep it in style, but __**please review**__ – I didn't realise how much it helps a writer to spur them until I started this story... oh, and thanks for reading!_


	4. So, where are we?

**The Heart in Overdrive**

_**Disclaimer:**__ While I want Bones to be mine, mine, mine – wanting is not getting. And in this case, is definitely NOT having. Boo._

**Previously...**

_So she'd told Ernie the number of the song, and then she floored them all with a truly wicked rendition of AC/DCs _Back in Black_. She had surreptitiously taken her soft auburn hair out of the tight bun it had been in for work, and she threw her head and upper-body wildly up and down, her hair creating a breeze and all the while paying the guitar as she did her best head-banging imitation of the stereo-typical long-haired rockers of the 80s. _

_When the song finished, she snorted at the stunned looks on her friends faces – seems she was full of surprises tonight. She chuckled again, raised an eyebrow then said "Score?" while holding her notebook and pen up in the air in an exaggerated gesture of impatience as she waited for them to respond to her act. She ended up scoring 48 out of 50, much to Booths amusement. Nobody had beaten his and Parkers first performance of the trip._

_Finally though, it was with great relief for poor old Ernie the driver, who turned the music down to the light-hearted boo's of his rowdy passengers, but he just smiled as he said loudly, "We're here!" The noise stopped instantly as everyone turned to the windows and peered out into the dark, trying to get some kind of indication of where they were. "Finally!" Brennan nervously breathed._

**Chapter 4 – So, where are we?**

It was just after 1pm when they turned off a small side road, the feeble headlights of the minivan barely managed to pierce the cloak of darkness that shrouded them, but as it swung into a large driveway, they briefly illuminated a large wrought iron gate, bounded either side by two imposing, intricately detailed and very old looking sandstone piers that stood at least nine feet tall. As the van approached the gate, it parted in the centre and each side silently swung inwards on well-oiled hinges to allow entry.

Brennan had to smile at her friends as she watched them cup their hands around the sides of their head, noses pressed against the cool glass of the windows in an attempt to get a glimpse of where they might be. She was reminded again of kids on a bus. Parker was still snuggled up on her lap, his head resting on her chest, but she had been here so many times in the last eight months, she knew by heart what they were seeing outside without the need to shift her position.

Ernie took pity on his passengers as their breath fogged up the window in front of them, so he turned off the dim interior light in the van with a quiet laugh so everyone could get a better look without reflections playing off the glass and obstructing what little could be seen.

Slowly, as he eased the van forward along an old cobblestoned driveway, heads turned, necks strained and all eyes peered eagerly ahead to look out the front windscreen. Once they'd passed through the gates, they could see soft balls of light emanating from Victorian-style cast-iron lamp posts lining both sides of the driveway. Spaced at 40 foot intervals, the soft luminescent glow hinted at a large tree-lined and meandering drive with small box hedges and sandstone edging defining the borders of the little lane they were following. In the distance, the lamps eventually disappeared around a large sweeping right-hand bend.

Considering the fact that Brennan works with some of the top people in their field in the country, Richard included – all of them with an almost overdeveloped sense of inquisitiveness, minds that were trained to question everything without fear or favour, she was incredulous that all five of them with her right now had been acutely lax in asking for even one piece of information about their destination.

Surely Booth or even Hodgins would have interrogated her mercilessly for every minute detail? She smirked in amusement. She had no idea why she hadn't been bombarded with questions from the moment she had told them of the arrangements, but on reflection, she thought it was a much, much better surprise this way. Besides, she might be a top selling author, but even she felt that she wouldn't be able to do justice in describing this place – they needed to see it for themselves.

As if on cue, it was Angela who broke the silent reverie of the passengers in the van, "So Sweetie, where are we?" she asked, her voice muffled slightly as she talked into the glass – she was looking out the side window again.

"Hey, I didn't even ask where we were going. I've just been so keyed up to be getting a break!" Hodgins chimed in.

Brennan chuckled, her deep throaty laugh ringing in their ears. "I was just wondering when someone was going to ask about that. Booth, not one question? You disappoint me – what kind of investigator are you?" she teased chuckling again, then continued "Since we're here, how about I let Katie fill you all in on the details over a cup of her hot chocolate before we get settled?"

Before Booth – or any for them for that matter – was able to make a comment, the van had finally made its way around the sweeping bend and there were small gasps of almost childlike delight at was in front of them.

The cobblestoned drive extended for well over 100 yards or so before it opened out in an enormous cul-de-sac. The cast-iron lamps were still evenly spaced all the way down and around it, casting their soft glow, but it was the thousands upon thousands of glittering twinkle lights decorating every trunk, branch and twig that outlined all of the 30 to 40 trees that graced both sides of the lane and surrounding the cul-de-sac creating a tunnel around them that sparkled with lights. It was simply breathtaking.

"Lord! It's just beautiful!" Cam mumbled in a low voice. Everyone murmured their agreement. Brennan grinned in the darkness of the van; she had reacted the same way the first time she'd driven down the driveway at night.

In the centre of the cul-de-sac was a large subtly-lit round sandstone fountain, and Ernie headed to the left hand side of it, parking the van about a third of the way around the cul-de-sac. He quickly jumped out and opened the side door for his passengers.

They stumbled from the van, glad to be finally out of it. The sounds of creaking bones and soft groans as they stretched their tired muscles were soon drowned out by the rapid approach of footsteps. With Parker still fast asleep and now firmly attached to Brennan's hip as she supported him with one arm, she moved forward to a small well-lit cobblestoned path.

She was met by a small smiling woman who held her arms out wide then she awkwardly wrapped them around Brennan in a huge bear hug, while trying not to squish the little boy in her arms, "Oh Tempe honey, it's so good to see you! I was just starting to get a little worried about you. Did you have a good trip up? Let me look at you. Hmm, you look a little tired dear – you really haven't been getting enough rest. And who's this? No, let me guess – this could only be Parker, right?"

Brennan chuckled, nodding her head, "Katie, it's good to see you. You really have to learn to take a breath when you're talking you know, I can never get a word in edgewise." She looked at the woman before her with great fondness. Katie was all of 4'9", petite frame and in her early sixties and possessed unnaturally high energy levels for a woman of her age.

She had a perfectly cropped ash-blonde bob 'to cover all those greys dear' with not a hair out of place, and the face of a forty-five-year-old that hadn't seen the sharp end of a surgeons blade. Her delicate features had only a hint of make-up that highlighted her assets, and she was well-dressed, her manicured nails waving in the air as she talked and she was wearing her signature antique rose-gold fob chain necklace and bracelet.

Katie's' light golden-brown eyes twinkled in mirth as she burst out laughing at Brennans words, but she quickly put her hand over mouth to stifle the noise. "Aww Tempe! Are you going to lecture me or are you going to finally introduce me to your friends?" She didn't wait for a response as she put her hand up in the air, "No, no, actually, let me guess who they are." She walked over to the group just behind Brennan who had been watching the interaction with interest. It was clear to them that Brennan knew this woman very well, what surprised them was the casual ease with which she related to her – and not one of them had any clue as to who she was.

"Now, this has got to be Angela, Tempe told us you were stunning" Katie gave a surprised looking Angela a warm hug, and she looked up into her bewildered face "Hello darling, I'm Katie – it's really good to finally meet you!". Ange smiled in confusion, but responded sweetly "Hi Katie, nice to meet you too".

Katie had already removed her arms, and was looking at the man standing beside her. She took his hands in hers and said with a grin, "Jack. Yep. Cute. As. A. Button. I do love a man with a five o'clock shadow. Welcome my sweet!" Ange snorted at the wide-eyed look on his face. Jack had a shy smile, "Nice to meet you Katie."

But Katie was off, and she was exaggerating the effort of having to look up at Richards face. "Hey stretch! You've got to be Richie, well my darling, talk dirty to me with those deep dulcet tones of yours!" she was grinning widely at his startled face. She grabbed him around the waist and squeezed him tightly until a deep rumbling laugh tumbled from his chest, "Katie, I think you've got it wrong, Jack's all about the dirt, I'm just the archaeologist." She laughed lightly, "Oh you're quick – humble and handsome. A devilish combination, you mark my words." he laughed again as Katie's attention turned on Cam.

"Oh Camille! You're right Tempe, she's gorgeous. Richie my boy, I hope you talk dirty to her too!" Cam laughed out loud, but wasn't fazed by this little pistol in front of her "Katie, you have no idea! And please, call me Cam." Katie gave a loud chuckle and hugged her warmly "Welcome Cam honey, it's great to meet you!"

Finally, she sidled up to Booth who looked at her with amusement. She put her hands on her hips, then reached out to touch his arm, but quickly withdrew it again, shaking her hand as if she'd just been burnt, "Good Lord Tempe, he is hot. Hot. Hot. Hot. No wonder you can't stop talking about him!" Booth gave her the patented charm smile and Katie smirked, "Oh yeah, Tempe, you really have to do something about wiping the smile off this one's face, he KNOWS he's hot."

She looked up at him again then whipped her arms about his waist, "Good to meet you Agent Hot Stuff!" Quick as a flash, her hand dropped to his butt and she gave a little squeeze, wiggled her eyebrows then moved away, chuckling all the while. He jumped at the contact, his eyes wide with shock and his mouth agape, but at least this time he had the decency to blush. "Wow Katie, looks like I'm going to need Bones to protect me from you this week" he said lightly, before raising his eyes to look at Bones. Katie chuckled again.

Brennan seemed to have found an interesting mark on her shoe and she audibly groaned and rolled her eyes, when Katie called Booth Agent Hot Stuff. It was a good thing she was standing in the shadows, because she was flushed bright red with embarrassment. In all the excitement to get here, she'd forgotten about Katie's... outgoing... personality. How on earth was she going to explain this one? She took a deep breath and when she raised her head; her friends were cheerfully sniggering as they watched her squirm.

"What can I say? Katie has a particularly disturbing aptitude for coaxing information out of me," she said apologetically, "I also can't control the inordinate amount of time she spends with the twins." While they didn't get the attempted joke, Katie certainly did and she laughed raucously at it, but was quick to slap her hand over mouth again to stifle the sound.

Katie moved to round them up, "Ok, so now that we're all so happily acquainted, grab your bags and follow me, my lovelies. Let's get you all settled". The group did as they were told and followed her out of sight down the little path.

Brennan was still highly embarrassed, but Katie had a way about her, that Tempe couldn't help but respond to. She actually reminded her a little of Angela – albeit an older version, but that playful cockiness was typical Ange. She smiled shook her head again in bewilderment and muttered under her breath, "I'll kill her when I get her alone" then headed over to talk to Ernie. He was closing the luggage compartment, "Ernie," she said quietly, "thank you again for driving us up at such short notice".

She gently shifted Parker to her other hip, then used her free hand to pull out another envelop from her pocket and pressed it into Ernie's hand. "Here's your cheque, and I've added a little extra for Ruby and the boys". He opened his mouth to argue, but she quickly continued, "The extra is for giving up your bowls night to do a job for me, for the incredibly short notice and for the cost of the fuel for the empty van back. Now, if you don't accept it, I am not above telling Ruby that you were being stubborn again".

She smiled at him as his eyes shone at her kindness, "Temperance," he pleaded in a low voice, "you have helped us too much already, you don't have to do this – I was more than glad to do it for you. I would do anything for you, you know that".

She put her hand on her hip, but a smile still played across her lips, "If you don't take your wife and four boys out for a family day on Sunday, I will have to hurt you." He looked at her and chuckled, knowing that she was deadly serious – that she could and would actually kick his ass. "Temperance, you're an angel. I don't know how to thank you".

Brennan snorted "There's no such thing as angels Ernie. And there's nothing to thank me for. Now, Katie has a bed set up for you and Charlie will cook you a hot breakfast before you head back home. Go park the van. You need to get some sleep." She turned to walk away, then turned back remembering something "Oh, Ruby also knows you're leaving in the morning, so you don't have to wake her with a call. I did that before we left DC" she said with a smile. He looked at her with a soft smile while he locked the sliding side door, "Tempe, you are too good to me, I swear. And there are such things as angels – ask your Agent Hot Stuff, he'll know what I'm talking about". She groaned again as she headed towards the path. It was time she got Parker into bed.

Quietly, Booth moved from out of the shadows where he'd been watching her with Ernie. Her heart skipped a beat when she realised he hadn't gone in with the others, but had waited for her. Damn. She really hadn't wanted witnesses to that little interaction. She wasn't ready to share _everything_ just yet. Maybe if she baited Booth, he'd forget about what he just saw. She sighed, that wasn't going to happen. "Booth, what are you doing lurking in the dark?"

He stopped in front of her, "Do you want me to take Parker?" he asked quietly.

"No, it's ok, don't disturb him, I've got him. Come on, let's get him into bed" she said quickly, really not wanting to talk about what just happened with Ernie. As she surmised though, Booth couldn't let it be, "You know, that was a really good thing you just did back there, Temperance, very well done".

Brennan smiled back at him, their eyes locking - it always gave her a thrill when he said her first name. She liked the way it sounded coming out of his mouth. He put his arm around her shoulders as they started down the path, "Now, I have about a hundred questions for you at the moment, but I'll start with the most important".

Brennan looked sideways at him, his tone was so serious that it stopped her in her tracks, he turned to look at her, "Bones, you told Katie you think I'm hot?" he flashed her his charm smile to show he was joking with her, and she snorted "I told her no such thing. I merely described you as well-structured" she denied hotly.

Booth taunted her all the way down the path and true to form, it was Brennan who took the bait getting more and more flustered, their light-hearted bickering ended abruptly though when Booth stopped dead in his tracks. They'd emerged from amongst the trees and he'd caught his first glimpse of where they would reside for the next nine days.

"Whoa, Bones. Look at this place. It's... it's awesome! Please tell me we are staying here." He was transfixed. She smiled in the darkness, secretly pleased he liked it. He hadn't even seen inside! She'd been more than a little anxious for him to like this place as much as she did, for it had become an important part of her life, and was set to become more so in the future.

She had finally felt comfortable in sharing this relatively new aspect of her life with her friends; it was one of the reasons why she chose to bring them here for their getaway. But Booths reaction gave her a spark of hope that he might truly enjoy it as much as she did. She moved a little forward so she was standing behind his left shoulder "Wait until you see it in the daylight – and the rest of the property for that matter" her husky voice murmured quietly in his ear.

He closed his eyes at the sound of her voice, while a wave of goose bumps swept down the left side of his neck, shoulder and arm. Her close proximity always had a stirring effect on him, and he felt a twitch below his belt as his little soldier suddenly became alert to the potential of the situation. Here she was, the woman that had captured his heart long ago, cradling his sleeping son like he was her own, and she absolutely no idea what her whispering in his ear was doing to him. He let out a controlled breath, and turned to face her, "Well then, I look forward to the full tour tomorrow." She smiled in answer, then carefully shifted Parker onto her other hip.

He looked down at Parker and smiled, then back into her eyes, "Come on Bones, let's get to bed". Her eyes went wide and her mouth parted in surprise.

_Shit_. _Shit_. He was quick to correct his Freudian slip, "I meant Parker. Let's get Parker to bed. You know, he must be starting to get heavy, and you won't let me take him from you." He couldn't look her in the eye, and thankfully she glossed over his faux pas, "Of course, it's this way." Brennan moved forward to take the lead as they moved up the path, with Booth just a step behind her, so he missed seeing her sly grin or the flush that spread up her neck and across her cheeks.

_Shit_! He rolled his eyes at his slip of the tongue then deliberately looked around at the surroundings to take his mind off her.

The house was immense. Actually, he wouldn't have called it a house. To him it looked more like a European-style chateau or a manor or a mansion – it most definitely wasn't a house. Unfortunately he couldn't make out a great deal in the dark, despite the large amount of lighting around the grounds, as much of it was still shrouded in shadows. He was definitely looking forward to checking it all out tomorrow with Bones though.

They walked up several stairs and along a shadowy wide terrace and entered the main portico. Bones quickly led them through a maze of darkened rooms and corridors and out to a large comfortable looking dining area. Katie heard their footsteps on the wooden floors and quickly got up to get them a cup of hot chocolate each. She couldn't resist a comment as she watched them take a seat with the others "Swapping spit were we darlings?" she asked with a perfectly straight face.

The chatter around the table stopped mid-sentence as Ange nearly choked while sipping her drink, Hodgins snorted with laughter as he patted Ange on the back, Cam nearly sprayed hers over the table in a sudden and somewhat violent coughing fit and Richards deep and infectious laugh rumbled through the room as he mirrored Jacks actions and patted Cam on the back.

Booth decided he'd ignore the comment all together, but he glared at Ange – being the self-appointed head of the Jeffersonian Match-Making Department – she has got to have said something to Katie – even if they'd only been here for all of ten minutes. Ange just smirked at Booth with one eyebrow raised, he looked away in slight irritation and she chuckled. Ange snuck a quick look across at Cam and wiggled her eyebrows twice, a cheeky smirk playing across her lips, Cam grinned – yep, they were going to have to have a little talk with Katie. She'll prove to be a useful ally in getting Booth and Brennan together.

Brennan, playing with Parkers curls, was oblivious to the ruckus and innuendoes' "Katie, I don't know what that means. Rationally speak..." she was quickly interrupted by Booth, who really didn't want to hear squint speak at 1.30am, "It means kissing Bones, and not like a kiss on the cheek." Feeling more than a little uncomfortable, he felt it was time to change the subject "So Katie, Bones hasn't told us a thing about this place. In fact, we don't even know what state we're in. Care to share?"

Katie placed a mug of hot chocolate in front of each of them with a chuckle; she knew deflection when she saw it. She slipped into a seat and looked at the faces around her. "Ok. I'll give you the short version for now, not one of you looks like you've slept well for a couple of weeks."

Richard spoke up, "Katie, they've had a dog of a case, and every single one of them have been working at least 20 hour days for the last three weeks, hence the bags under their eyes". Brennan looked around at her friends, and she wondered briefly if she looked as bad as they did.

"Ok my lovelies, Cliff Notes version. Welcome to Tucker County, West Virginia and this place" she gestured all around her, "is Oaklands Farm..."

"Wait, we're in Tucker County? As in Huntsville, Tucker County? Home of little Andy?" Booth interrupted sharply, while looking at Brennan with surprise.

"Well, technically we're over 20 minutes away from Huntsville. But yes, Agent Hot Stuff, you are correct. Little Andy is my adopted grandson" Katie said as she leaned back with a smile.

_To be continued._

**A/N:** _I am so thankful to all who have reviewed and/or put this story on alert. I've come to realise that I am one of these people who see every little thing occurring in their minds eye, and it seems I am unable to gloss over things, unless I am deliberately keeping it from the audience. So I am sorry for the slow pace of the story, but I hope it's keeping you interested enough to __**review**__ and come back for more. _

_And yes I promise that'll be posted far quicker than this chapter. Thanks for reading._


	5. Early risers

**The Heart in Overdrive**

_**Disclaimer:**__ While I want Bones to be mine, mine, mine – wanting is not getting. And in this case, is definitely NOT having. Boo. So I'm just playing with them for a little while for my own amusment._

**

* * *

**

**Previously...**

_Katie placed a mug of hot chocolate in front of each of them with a chuckle; she knew deflection when she saw it. She slipped into a seat and looked at the faces around her. "Ok. I'll give you the short version for now, as not one of you looks like you've slept well for a couple of weeks."_

_Richard spoke up, "Katie, they've had a dog of a case, and every single one of them have been working at least 20 hour days for the last three weeks, hence the bags under their eyes". Brennan looked around at her friends, and she wondered briefly if she looked as bad as they did._

"_Ok my lovelies, Cliff Notes version: Welcome to Tucker County, West Virginia and this place" she gestured all around her, "is Oaklands Farm..."_

"_Wait, we're in Tucker County? As in Huntsville, Tucker County? Home of little Andy?" Booth interrupted sharply, while looking at Brennan with surprise. _

"_Well, technically we're over 20 minutes away from Huntsville. But yes, Agent Hot Stuff, you are correct. Little Andy is my adopted grandson" Katie said as she leaned back with a smile. _

**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Chapter 5 – Early birds**

As is typical for Parker Booth, he awoke early on Saturday morning but today it took him a little while to work out where he was. The very first thing he noticed was his foot was caught in something hairy. As he pushed himself up onto his elbows and looked around in bleary confusion, he realised he was in a gigantic bed with his sleeping dad. His dad was at the far edge of the bed but for some weird reason he was laying diagonally across it, his head down the same end as his dads' feet. He gulped; he hoped dad had a shower before he came to bed, because his feet could stink really bad sometimes. He couldn't smell anything right now, but it really wasn't safe to stay near them – just in case.

He tried to move his foot away from the hairy thing, but he only managed to kick his father instead. He sat up a little more and looked in puzzlement at his foot. Somehow it had got caught up in the sleeve of his fathers' T-shirt. _Eew! It's his armpit. Oh that's gross. _He wrinkled his nose while trying to save his foot from cooties getting all over it. While he really loved his dad and even though he wasn't sure where cooties lived, _it was his_ _**armpit**_, and they could be in there waiting to attack. Actually, he didn't even know what cooties were – he knew from the kids at school they weren't good though. _I'll have to ask Bones when I see her next, she knows everything,_ he thought seriously.

With his foot safely rescued and any potential cootie invasion wiped off onto the bed sheet, he looked around the room and tried to recall where he was. It didn't look familiar at all, but then he remembered playing air guitar in the van last night before he fell asleep on Bones's lap. _Oh yeah, I'm on holidays with Dad and all our friends! Awesome!_

He climbed down from the bed and had a look around. At this very moment he was interested in only three things:

1) The location of the bathroom

2) Where the TV was, and

3) Finding the remote.

He quickly found the bathroom which was lucky, he really needed to go. Next was to find the TV. He knew he was allowed to watch cartoons in the morning as long as the sound was turned right down so he didn't wake any one up. He'd found the remote, he just had no idea where they had hidden the TV. Hmm, this wasn't good.

He looked around for something to play with. Nothing. _I hope they have some kids stuff somewhere,_ he thought in slight panic. He looked around the room again and this time he noticed the sheer curtains in front of him had a slight gap in the middle. Like most inquisitive 6 year olds with nothing better to do, he wandered over and pulled them apart to find two huge glass doors behind them. A little later that day he'd learn they are called French doors, but for now he pushed down on the ornate brass handle to open it and walked through.

He found himself on a huge balcony that ran nearly the whole length of the house. There were lots of nice plants in pots, little tables with matching chairs and a metal railing that was slightly taller than he was. Not that it really mattered because he was able to easily see the view between the wires anyway.

He walked over to it and looked out. The first thing his eyes were drawn to was a wide river that had a little island in the middle of it_. Oh cool! We can go swimming! Maybe there's even a boat_, he thought excitedly. He noticed there seemed to be lots of forest around, and he resolved to ask Jack if they could go bug hunting together. He and Richie could go 'sploring too and find some old dinosaur bones to dig up, and maybe even Ange could help him use his new kids digital camera she gave him a few months ago for his birthday, so they can get some really good pictures to show his mum. Daddy and Bones could take him fishing and swimming... the more he thought, the more excited he was about all the things they could do.

As his eyes moved from the river and up the bank, situated between the house and the river, was a weird looking stage thing over near some big trees, and a little frown formed on his forehead as he tried to work out what it was. As he looked at it intently, he noticed two people inside it. He moved a little further along the balcony to try and get a better look and as he shifted position, he could see quite clearly what was going on.

His frown deepened and his mouth opened slightly as he watched the really odd sight for quite a while, and it wasn't until they both turned that he recognised one of the people was Bones.

As soon as this realisation hit, he ran quickly back into his room and was hurriedly trying to find his bag of clothes so he could get dressed. "Dad!" he called out while pulling everything in the bag out onto the floor so he could find a pair of jeans. He looked up at the bed to see if his dad had moved.

"Daaaad!" he repeated as he whipped off his PJs and stepped into his pants. "You 'wake Dad? You really gotta see this" he said excitedly. Still nothing. He frowned as he threw on a T-shirt and found a pullover; it wasn't like his dad to not answer him at all. "Come on sleepy head, we're on holidays, you gotta get up," he said it a little louder, his dad was old, he reasoned to himself, maybe he's going a bit deaf like Grandma. His shoes and socks almost on, he still hadn't heard a sound from his father.

Once he was dressed, he climbed back onto the gigantic bed and crawled over to his fathers' head "Dad, you 'wake?" he lifted one of Booths eyelids up and peered at his eyeball to see if he was in fact awake or whether he was just faking it. It seemed to roll around in his head, "Daaad, you 'wake?" he repeated loudly.

"No bub, I'm asleep. I've told you a million times, when I'm in bed and my eyes are shut it means I'm asleep," Booths voice was gravelly and tired, a fact completely lost on his excited son.

"But dad, Bones is outside on a stage thing and she's doing a really weird slow dance with a man. Come on, you gotta come see," Parker was gently shaking him and trying to lift that eyelid up again.

"Bub, just give me ten more minutes and I'll get up ok?" Booth quietly pleaded, shoving a pillow over his head, so Parker couldn't accost his eyelids again. The last three weeks of next to no sleep were starting to take its toll on the normally energetic father.

"Ok dad, then I is going 'sploring. I wanna see why Bones is dancing so weird" he lifted the pillow covering his dads head, and gave him a wet peck that landed on his closed eyelid, "See ya."

Booth groaned into his pillow and rolled over, it took a few minutes to process what Parker had been saying, but as the fog slowly lifted from his tired mind, Parkers words started to sink in... 'Bones... slow dance with a man'... _Huh? What the hell is he talking about?_ He pushed himself up into a sitting position and ran his hand through his hair. _What did he just say?_

"Parker?" he called out. _Did he say he was going exploring?_ He sighed as he got out of bed. He pulled on a pair of jeans over his boxers and looked around the room; it looked like a bomb hit it. "A Parker bomb" he muttered under his breath, noting the clothes scattered all over the floor from one end of the room to the other. "Boys are so damned messy" he muttered again.

As he moved to pick up Parkers clothing two things happened at once. His tired mind had finally grappled with what Parker had been saying and he'd noticed the curtain was parted and the French doors open. He felt a twinge of jealousy based on the ramblings of a six year old at – he looked at his watch – 6:15 in the morning. He groaned again when he realised he hadn't even got four hours sleep. No wonder his head was so foggy.

He opened the curtains completely, the sun kissing him good morning with its golden yellow rays. _What a beautiful sunrise._ He walked through the French doors and looked around. This place is amazing, but he'd take a closer look at everything as soon as he'd worked out what Parker had been talking about. He ambled over to the railing and immediately saw a huge octagonal-shaped rotunda over near some very old rambling oak trees. It was the 'stage thing' Parker had mentioned. Its timber and iron-lace combined to create a very large and beautiful outdoor room while the domed roof provided ample shade and protection from the elements. Like Parker, Booth moved to his left a little more to get a better view – and instantly he'd solved Parker's riddle.

In the middle of the rotunda were Bones and another man he did not recognise. Both were dressed in their baggy white martial arts uniforms that were cinched at the waist with black belts, and their feet bare. On the floor of the rotunda were four large training mats pushed together to form a giant square. Standing a couple of feet apart, both of them were doing slow and controlled punches and kicks in the air and they were moving in perfect synchronicity. With his side-on view of them in the rotunda, he watched her in fascination – she looked serene, relaxed – and utterly beautiful.

As he leant on the railing, he realised he was watching them perform what Bones had called Kata. He'd seen her practicing it one time when he had picked her up from her Karate class when they had been called out to a case. Kata were like sets of detailed choreographed patterns of movement. It involved practicing the moves you might make in response to an enemy attacker, while using a set of punches and kicks along with stepping and turning at the same time as attempting to maintain perfect form. She'd explained at the time that they made for great warm ups before sparring as well as training and reinforcing your learned skills.

He yawned widely and ran his hand over his face to try and wipe away the last vestiges of sleep. He had no idea where Brennan got her energy levels from. He was exhausted, between the case and then another late one last night – he shook his head in wonderment at her, she had just as little sleep as he had and yet here she was in front of him going through her exercise. He was certain Ange, Jack, Cam and Richie weren't up earlier than a sparrow's fart – like he was now, and if he didn't have Parker with him, he was pretty certain he wouldn't be seeing the sun until it was well overhead in the sky. He yawned widely again – trying to get some of that fresh mountain air into his lungs and trying not to think about the bed waiting for him inside.

As he continued to watch her graceful movements, his mind started working overtime. He was going to get some answers today if it killed him. His curiosity was instantly peaked last night at the revelation they were in Tucker County, West Virginia. But he didn't get much more information than that because everybody's adrenalin levels had finally levelled out and all were more than ready to hit the sack. It was decided that Katie would arrange brunch for them so they could sleep in, then they could talk all they wanted. Bones was also going to show them around and Katie would tell them about what was available for them to do during their stay.

But it was more than that, Bones was clearly very comfortable with Katie, but how long have they known each other? How did they meet? How does she know about this place? Clearly she's been coming here for quite some time, but how come she's never mentioned it? And there was far more to her interaction with Ernie the bus driver last night than what met the eye. Yes indeed, there were so many questions he wanted answers to. He sighed as he shook his head slightly as if to clear his head from the mini tornado that his mind was creating.

As he continued to watch her, a movement off to the right caught his eye. Glancing over, it was a small boy skipping down the cobblestone pathway that meandered between the beautifully manicured gardens and a large copse of huge old oak trees. _Aha! There he is – number one son_.

He watched as Parker made his way down to the rotunda, then stop just before he mounted the stairs. He must have said something as Bones' head snapped around to face him and from the angle Booth was standing, he could see the look of delight on her face. She didn't stop her practice, but she was saying something to his son with a smile on her face. Parker grinned and nodded in response then quickly climbed the stairs and sat himself at the top of them, sitting cross legged and his mouth wide open while she obviously talked to him as they went through the routine. The only time he closed his mouth was when he took a bite and chewed whatever it was in his hands. _Uh-oh. Please tell me Parker has not been exploring in the kitchen again_.

The crisp early morning air was giving him goose bumps, but he couldn't take his eyes off the scene that was playing out in front of his eyes. He felt a flutter as he watched them interact. Brennan had talked a little more to Parker and his eyes lit up and the smile he gave her was just beaming. He quickly stood up, shoved the entire thing of whatever it was in his hands into his mouth, and then moved towards Brennan. He could barely close his jaws for the size of the bulge in his cheeks. He was madly trying to chew and swallow and Booth could hear the quiet echo of Brennan's laugh as she chuckled at his sons antics.

Booth was riveted to the spot. When had his partner become so good with his son? Now he felt his heart lurch in his chest as he continued watching the scene before him.

She'd finally stopped her practice and had knelt down in front of Parker. Booth would have given anything to know what she was saying to him as she continued to talk to him, the grin still playing across her lips. Parker's eyes were wide, and he was still desperately trying to swallow that enormous mouthful of food. Brennan laughed again, then she gently poked one of his bulging cheeks and he suddenly burst out laughing, spraying his food all down her white uniform and the floor. Parker was horrified at what he did, and before Booth could even think about moving to salvage the situation, Brennan just laughed again, a little louder as Booth could again hear the faintest of traces of it.

The look on Parkers face almost made his heart break and Booth unconsciously held his breath, wondering how she would react. But Brennan just reached out and scooped the little boy to her, murmuring soothing words as she pulled a few tissues from the inside of her white uniform and wiped his face clean of tears and food, then she quickly cleaned up the mess. She was looking directly at Parker, a smile continued to adorn her features and she had made him giggle again.

Booth let out a whoosh of air, this woman was amazing. How could she ever think for a second that she was no good with kids?

Parkers arms were suddenly latched tight around her neck, and both laughing hard as his exuberant display of affection had made Brennan lose her balance and they both tumbled to the floor, Brennan holding Parker securely on top of her so he wouldn't get hurt. Even in a playful accident she was mindful of protecting his son.

Booth was awestruck. He knew that Brennan had slowly been changing over the four or so years he'd known her, but in the last 12 hours he'd seen a side to her that she rarely showed, let alone in public and in front of strangers. No, he amended, that's not quite right - these people might have been strangers to him, but they weren't to her. But the fact that she had arranged all of this – the getaway, getting Rebecca to agree to let him have Parker for over a week, ensuring Richie was here for Cam – she'd changed a little more than he had actually realised. His heart swelled with pride for her, she was trying so very hard to use her heart – and the results had him thrown a little off-kilter. He thought he knew her better than she knew herself. But he was suddenly not so sure about that. He grinned at the thought. Getting to know this other side of her while they were away was going to be very interesting.

While Booth was busy mulling things over, Brennan and Parker had eventually got to their feet, smiles still on their faces. Brennan had introduced Parker to her companion. The man had stopped his routine a while ago as he watched their goings-on, and smiled and talked as Parker and Brennan laughed again. The man moved so that he was standing in front of Parker, and Brennan moved so she was standing directly behind Parker. At the man's word, Brennan reached in front of her and gently guided Parkers hands so his palms were together in prayer fashion in front of his chest and then she murmured in his ear and they bowed together to the man.

They stood upright and the man moved his feet in a wide open stance position with his arms raised. Parker imitated the position, and Brennan – right behind him – moved his foot slightly so it was in the right spot, her arms covering his so that he learnt the correct position to start his movements. Booth smirked as he wondered idly if he told her he wanted to learn Karate whether she would teach him in the same way she was teaching Parker. Then he remembered when Brennan had helped him with his back troubles, and he clearly recalled the feel of her body pressed up behind him as she reached under his arms to manoeuvre his head.... that little interaction had fuelled countless fantasies for weeks afterwards. He smiled again. Yes, he might have to learn karate with Parker – the opportunities for a little one-on-one sparring time with Bones were infinite.

Brennan continued moving his son's arms and hands in a set of patterns, eventually stepping away from him as he got the hang of it. She stood beside him as they both repeated the patterns the man in front of them made. Booth shook his head to clear away the lusty thoughts and pushed away from the railing, it was time to get started on the day, and as much as he liked to observe his Bones, he much preferred to interact with her.

Booth moved quickly back to his room, showered and dressed. He did a spot clean of the room, well, actually the only thing that was a mess was Parker's gear, but he quickly tidied it up then headed out to find his two favourite people.

His room was on the second floor and when Katie had led him to it last night; the house had been shrouded in darkness, with only a few dimmed down-lights to show the way. So he was a little surprised to find the house awash with natural light as he made his way down stairs to the large dining room they sat in just a few hours ago. He looked around, admiring the decor. This place was just amazing. It was clear the interior had recently been renovated. The 'house' was old – very old, but it was the wonderful blend of old and new that he really liked. Beautiful antiques worked in harmony with modern pieces to create a classic look, a homely feel and a relaxing environment to live in.

He didn't normally care so much about his surroundings, in fact he'd learned over the years to be a little indifferent to his environs due to the paltry budget allowances the FBI gave for out-of-town accommodation and expenses. He'd often had to stay in some very basic lodgings.

But even he could appreciate the attractiveness of this place. Modern neutral-coloured soft furnishings allowed the grand old antique pieces to shine in their own right, while the polished curved details in the marquetry floorboards of the ground floor gave the house an air of comfortable warmth and the many vases of fresh flowers strategically placed throughout released a soft, delicate fragrance. The 12 foot ceilings gave the place an airy and spacious feel and the wall art high above his head added to the ambience. But what he liked most was that despite its obvious luxury, it felt like a place you were welcome in, where you could sit and put your feet up like you would do at home and you weren't scared you might break anything. He was in love with this place already – and he had only seen a glimpse of it.

When he got to the dining room, he stopped in awe. He obviously was too tired to take in surroundings last night, because the place was simply spectacular. The entire length of this side of the house was made up of large wide timber French doors that allowed the natural light to flood the room, and it made no apologies for the stunning view it afforded.

From this level, the beautifully manicured gardens in the foreground worked in perfect harmony with the river and the forest in the background. No matter where he turned his head in the 180 degrees available, there was a majestic vista to behold – the landscape designers and the architects of the mansion had obviously worked in unison to create the visual feast – he'd never seen anything quite so stunning in all his life, even Jack would be impressed – and Booth was certain Jack would have stayed at some amazing places in his time. Being early October, and this high in the mountains the colourful fall foliage of the forest were simply adding to the breathtaking panorama before him. He let out a soft sigh – this was simply divine. Bones couldn't have picked a better place for them to relax and unwind.

A quiet voice broke him from his reverie, "Its stunning isn't it. Even after 45 years, I have never tired from that view." Booth turned around and found a man with a warm smile looking at him from the kitchen, "You must be Agent Booth" the man said as he stepped around the oversized kitchen bench come breakfast bar, wiping his hands on a tea towel that was flung over his shoulder. He put his hand out and looked Booth in the eye. "I'm Charlie. I believe you met my wife Katie last night? She hasn't been able to quit gabbling about you lot since she woke up this morning" he said with an even wider grin on his face.

Booth chuckled softly as he shook his hand. "Hi Charlie, it's really nice to meet you. Please, call me Seeley. And I must say, Katie did make quite an impression" he chuckled again at the memory of her pinching his ass.

Charlie had a full head of thick grey hair, warm green eyes surrounded by deeply etched crow's feet and a golden tan from years spent working in the sun. He was a handsome older man, aging well for his early 60s. He was as tall as Booth, well built with a hard and lean body indicating he was still engaged in long days of physical labour. And he was quick to smile with an open, easy manner that Booth immediately liked.

"Can I get you a coffee or tea to get you started for the day? You're up quite a bit earlier than I was expecting. Although I bet Parker woke you up, right?" Charlie said with a smile.

"A coffee would be wonderful thank you Charlie. And yes, my eyelids haven't been the same since he opened them up for me this morning," Booth chuckled, then continued " I also saw him with food so I thought I'd better make sure his 'exploring' didn't involve too much collateral damage."

"I was out the back picking some herbs and when I came in, I noticed a little hand stealing a savoury muffin from a fresh batch I made this morning," Charlie laughed with delight, "He almost wet himself when I caught him." They both laughed as Charles handed him a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

"I'm sorry if he was a nuisance..." started Booth, but Charlie cut him short "Seeley, he was fine. And he's a really nice kid. Besides I have two very mischievous grand kids, twins - Mike and Lucy that kept everyone on their toes." Charlie shook his head as he laughed again. "What am I saying – they're now 19 and they still do! But you'll see what I mean when you meet them later. They've been trying to re-educate Tempe to be not quite so... how can I put it... literal? They've been tormenting her for months." He laughed again, as he continued, "Did you want a refill to take with you while you check up on your son?"

Booth smiled again, this guy was one step ahead of him "How did you know?" he chuckled. "Sure, that would be great if it's no bother" he turned and looked out at the vista in front of him, and noted that he could only see a glimpse of the domed roof of the rotunda from where he was standing. It was time he rescued Bones from Parker.

Charlie topped up Booths coffee and handed him a savoury muffin in a napkin "Just to tide you over. Now if you head through these doors and walk to your right all the way to the end of the terrace, you find the path that goes to the rotunda – and you'll find your two _favourite people_" he gave Booth a knowing smile, then turned and headed back into the kitchen to get on with his morning preparations.

Booth stood still for a moment, a little shocked at his choice of words, and then he shook his head, a small grin playing across his lips. "Thanks Charlie." Did everyone know how he felt about her? He'd only just met the man for goodness sake! Obviously Katie was bringing her husband up to speed on their guests. He rolled his eyes at the thought then made his way outside.

He easily found the path that he had watched Parker skip down a while ago, and sipped his coffee appreciatively – happy for the caffeine hit he was getting and took a bite from the savoury muffin. It was still warm, and absolutely delicious. No wonder Parker shoved it all into his mouth – he couldn't put it down either. Just as the rotunda became visible through the oak trees he heard a heavy thumping sound, a loud groan and a high-pitched scream that could only have come from his son "Bones!"

Booth sprang into action, his heart suddenly thumping in his ears as he sprinted the remaining distance to the rotunda, while the coffee cup lay forgotten, smashed into a thousand pieces on the cobblestone path...

**To be continued...**

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_**A/N:**__ I must apologise profusely for the serious lateness of this chapter, unfortunately life has been annoyingly disrupting my writing time – between my mother turning into a demanding __**Bridezilla**__ for her FOURTH wedding and then a long and a very painful bout with an infected ear that has turned into a perforated eardrum. So I have a few good days and lots of bad ones. Good ones I can kind of think and write; bad ones I can't get out of bed for the pain._

_It is also with a heartfelt **thank you** that I give a huge shout out to __**Odonata Epiprocta**__ for her gentle and persistent encouragement to pull my finger out and get on with the story because she's busting for another instalment, but also for taking the time to beta it to make sure the pain killers aren't making things too loopy. _

_I thank you for your patience, hope this filler chap had been worth the wait. Please take a minute to review, let me know if you are still enjoying this. And thanks so much for taking the time to read. _


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